Section 58
Deemed refusal of request
Part 3 · Access to Records of Private Bodies · Chapter 3 — Manner of Access
If the head of a private body fails to give the decision on a request for access to the requester concerned within the period contemplated in section 56(1), the head of the private body is, for the purposes of this Act, regarded as having refused the request.
Source: SAFLII — Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (consolidated, updated 11 October 2024) — cross-checked verbatim before publishing.
Beyond the text
What this means in practice
- Miss the deadline and the law decides for you: failing to give a decision within the s.56 period is deemed a refusal.
- A deemed refusal hands the requester appeal and court rights — with none of your reasons on record.
- The lesson: manage the clock. Silence is the worst outcome.
Relevant tool
PopiGuard's deadline tracking is built to prevent exactly this — no request should ever lapse into a deemed refusal.